I said it and someone tried doing the Heimlich maneuver on me.
FREE AGENCY THREAD (and Potential Trade Bait)
- Thread starter Dingleberry
- Start date
I said it and someone tried doing the Heimlich maneuver on me.
Harold Landry III
Landry agreed to a three-year, $43.5 million deal with the Patriots that includes $26 million guaranteed.What it means: The Patriots ranked last in the NFL with 28 sacks in 2024. Under new head coach Mike Vrabel and defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, they are hoping to become a more attacking unit that plays on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage. That's Landry's game (50.5 career sacks over seven seasons).
Familiarity also is a notable part of the signing, as Landry played under Vrabel and Williams in Tennessee from 2018-23. Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf had said that the coaching staff's experience with other teams would ideally be a benefit to the Patriots in free agency because of their intimate knowledge of personnel. The team pounced quickly on Landry, who was released by the Titans on March 7.
What's the risk: Landry tore the ACL in his right knee in September of 2022, and while he has totaled 19.5 sacks since his return, some observers have questioned if he still has the same burst. The Titans could have kept him in 2025 at a base salary of $17.5 million but instead released him. Landry enters his eighth NFL season and turns 29 in June.
Robert Spillane
Spillane has agreed to a three-year, $37 million contract with the Patriots, a source told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.What it means: The 6-foot-1, 229-pound Spillane came into his own each of the past two seasons with the Raiders, starting every game and totaling 173 tackles with 5.5 sacks and 11 passes defended. He had been mostly a backup his first five seasons in the NFL, breaking into the league as an undrafted free agent with the Titans in 2018 -- Mike Vrabel's first year as head coach there. So similar to the free-agent deal with Landry, the Patriots tap into the Vrabel pipeline again with Spillane.
He's a smaller and lighter off-the-line linebacker than the "thumpers" the Patriots have traditionally employed in the old Bill Belichick-based defensive system, which reflects how Vrabel and defensive coordinator Terrell Williams are shifting to a faster, more aggressive approach on defense.
What's the risk: They are buying high on Spillane, who had signed a two-year, $7 million deal with the Raiders in 2023. Spillane turns 30 in December.
Carlton Davis III
Davis has agreed to a three-year, $60 million contract. The deal contains $34.5 million fully guaranteed, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.What it means: The No. 2 corner spot opposite Christian Gonzalez was among the Patriots' needs entering free agency, and the 6-foot-1, 206-pound Davis was one of the few decisive options available on the market (88 career starts). This immediately gives the Patriots a potent one-two combo on the outside that rates favorably across the league, as both Gonzalez and Davis have shown the ability to play top-level man coverage.
Davis also has a background with first-year defensive coordinator Terrell Williams, who was Lions' defensive line coach in 2024 in Davis' lone season in Detroit. That has been a familiar theme with the team's early moves in free agency.
What's the risk: Davis, 28, enters his eighth season in the NFL and has never played a full regular season. His 2024 season ended in Week 15 after he sustained a broken jaw.
Morgan Moses
The Patriots and Moses have agreed to a three-year, $24 million contract.What it means: The market for offensive tackles was robust across the NFL with younger options such as Dan Moore Jr. (Steelers to Titans) and Jaylon Moore (49ers to Chiefs) landing deals averaging $20.5 million and $15 million per season, respectively. Even if the Patriots signed one of them, there would still be a question as to how strongly they solidified a top need because both are still developing players.
In the 34-year-old Moses, there are no questions about development as he's much closer to the end of his career than the beginning. He is more of a pure right tackle, so his presence potentially takes some pressure off 2024 third-round pick Caedan Wallace and his development. Moses is also considered a strong locker room presence, which likely has added value to Mike Vrabel as he works to establish a new culture.
What's the risk: Moses has played in 166 career games, with 158 career starts -- a reflection of impressive durability and also how the Patriots are banking on him still having gas left in the tank. Moses navigated his way through a sprained MCL last year with the Jets and a torn pectoral muscle with the Ravens in 2023. A three-year deal for Moses, even if it's backloaded, is a notable commitment for a player at this stage of his career.
Milton Williams
Williams agreed to a four-year, $104 million deal, sources told ESPN.What it means: The Patriots are spending big and this was the bonanza of them all in terms of opening the checkbook, with Williams immediately becoming the highest-paid player on the team at $26 million per season. Williams had five sacks, 10 QB hits and 7 tackles for loss last season, which highlights his penetrating style and how he will be a centerpiece of the Patriots' new defensive scheme in creating interior disruption.
Williams, who turns 26 in April, will ideally pair with Christian Barmore at the heart of the Patriots' defense but Barmore's status remains in question as he was limited to four games last season due to blood clots. That's why defensive tackle was one of the team's top needs.
What's the risk: Williams was part of a rotation in Philadelphia (just seven starts last season) and there is a question as to how he will adapt to a larger workload. He played 48% of the defensive snaps in 2024, so the Patriots are paying a premium in projecting his growth entering his fifth NFL season. Williams played 41% of the defensive snaps as a rookie, followed by 36% and 46% in his second and third seasons, respectively. At 6-foot-3 and 290 pounds, he is on the lighter side for a D-lineman, so how he holds up against the run with a larger workload also bears watching.
Makes Milton available for trade
You think so? I'd hope they keep him
Sign the beast
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